Looks like last week's leaked Sprint ad for the Galaxy Nexus was right on the money - The Now Network just officially announced the GN as one of its first 4G LTE devices, alongside the LG Viper.

Even though Sprint has decided to make the GN official, there is still one immediate question looming about: what is the clock speed? Truth be known - we still don't know. The press release is void of any hardware specs, so we'll just have to wait and see if the processor is running at a full 1.5GHz as previously rumored.

Update: When asked about the processor speed in Sprint's Nexus, this is what Sammy had to say:

As for the Galaxy Nexus, Samsung is excited about the reaction the Galaxy Nexus has received in the U.S. At this time, Samsung has no additional comments.

That's a polite way of saying stop askin', because we're not tellin'.

While the PR was missing key specs, the GN's landing page at Sprint does provide a couple of details about the device:

Building upon Sprint's partnership with Google, the GN will include Wallet

This version will only have 16GB of internal storage; as opposed to Verizon's version, which has 32GB

Update: Good news!We just got word that the Sprint GN will also have 32GB of internal storage.

Everything else (aside form the above noted clock speed) seems to be identical to the Big Red version of the device.

Also announced today for the Now Network is the LTE-enabled LG Viper, an eco-friendly Gingerbread handset with a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 4-inch NOVA display, and 5 MP and VGA cameras on the back and front respectively. Like the Galaxy Nexus, the Viper will also feature NFC and Google Wallet, so you can leave your wallet behind and pay with your phone.

While this is exciting news for Sprint customers, there is still one major detail that is noticeably absent: pricing and availability. If you want to keep up with the latest happenings on the release front, you'll have to hit the LTE landing page and sign up for notifications.

If, for some reason, you're just not into either of these phones, then it's also worth noting that Sprint will be bringing "approximately 15" new devices to its 4G LTE market throughout 2012.

Sprint Nextel Corporation has posted the following release to its Newsroom website:

The debut of these devices is a key element of Network Vision, Sprint’s plan to consolidate multiple network technologies into one seamless solution. With Network Vision, Sprint customers can expect to enjoy ultra-fast data speeds, improved 3G voice and data quality, and stronger in-building signal penetration providing a more valuable wireless experience and enhancing the value of current unlimited plans.

“The first three products that will run on the Sprint 4G LTE network exemplify the cutting-edge technology our customers can expect from Sprint as we progress with our 4G LTE rollout,” said Steve Elfman, president of Network, Wholesale and Product Development for Sprint. “Galaxy Nexus packs industry-leading features and the best of Google into a beautiful design while LG Viper 4G LTE continues Sprint’s commitment to green devices that don’t sacrifice speed or technology. These products combine with our unlimited data pricing plans to give Sprint customers a powerful wireless experience.”

On Jan. 5, Sprint CEO Dan Hesse announced that customers in Atlanta, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio are expected to be among the first to benefit from 4G LTE and improved 3G coverage in the first half of 2012. Additional areas that will receive 3G enhancements and 4G LTE expansion in 2012 will be announced later in the year.

Approximately 15 4G LTE devices are currently on track to be launched in 2012 including handsets, tablets and data cards. Additionally, 4G devices, including HTC EVO™ Design 4G, Samsung Epic™ 4G Touch and Nexus S™ 4G, will continue to be sold in 2012.

The new 4G LTE smartphones will benefit from Sprint Everything plans including the Everything Data Plan with Any Mobile, AnytimeSM offering unlimited data, texting and calling to and from any mobile phone in America while on the Sprint Network. With Sprint’s unlimited data plans, customers don’t have to worry about throttling or surprises on their monthly bill from data overage charges like they might with tiered data plans from other carriers.

Sprint’s unlimited data plans also benefit NBA fans. As the Official Wireless Service Partner of the NBA, Sprint exclusively offers Sprint NBA Mobile on Android phones, including the upcoming 4G LTE LG Viper. This new custom app provides in-game and post-game video highlights, news, scores, stats and live home and away radio broadcasts to NBA fans.

Robust Features at 4G LTE Speeds

Pairing the beauty of Samsung hardware with a pure Google experience, Galaxy Nexus on Sprint is built on Android™ 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich. Ice Cream Sandwich brings an entirely new look and feel to Android. It has a redesigned user interface with improved multi-tasking, notifications, Wi-Fi hotspot, NFC support and a full web browsing experience. Galaxy Nexus features software navigation buttons, a first for Android smartphones. The lock screen, home screen, phone app and everything in between has been rethought and redesigned to make Android simple, beautiful and useful.

Ice Cream Sandwich introduces innovations such as Face Unlock, which uses facial recognition to unlock your phone. Using NFC (Near Field Communications) technology, Android Beam allows users to quickly share web pages, apps and YouTube™ videos with friends by simply tapping phones together. Users can even video chat with up to 10 friends with Google+ Hangouts for mobile. Galaxy Nexus will also be Sprint’s second smartphone enabled with NFC supporting Google Wallet, enabling the phone to be used like a wallet to make safe, secure purchases at hundreds of thousands of participating retailers.

Green without Compromising Speed

LG Viper 4G LTE brings customers the benefit of eco-friendly features without missing out on speed or the latest technology. Initial eco-friendly features include a charger with a no-load consumption rating of .03W, which exceeds the EC Code of Conduct on energy efficiency and the casing is made of 35 percent recycled plastics. Additional details will be provided closer to availability.

Powered by Android 2.3, Gingerbread, LG Viper 4G LTE is equipped with a 1.2GHz dual core processor and two cameras – a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera and a VGA front-facing camera that makes face-to-face video calls a fun and easy experience. It offers a 4-inch WVGA NOVA display, hotspot capability and a microSD™ slot supporting up to 32GB. It is also compatible with DLNA-capable devices.

As a Sprint ID smartphone, LG Viper 4G LTE allows users to cut through the clutter of more than 400,000 apps in Android Market™ by selecting from a variety of mobile ID packs featuring apps, ringers, wallpapers, widgets and more. Currently available Sprint ID packs include Green, Fashion and Beauty, E!™, MTV™ Music, CMT and NASCAR Sprint Cup. In addition, LG Viper 4G LTE is NFC-enabled and capable of providing Google Wallet.

Hotspot Combines 4G LTE, 4G WiMAX and 3G

Sprint expands its mobile broadband portfolio with its first 4G LTE mobile broadband device, Sierra Wireless™ Tri-Network Hotspot. It will be the first tri-network (3G, 4G and 4G LTE) mobile hotspot and will easily allow families, small businesses and traveling co-workers to share their high-speed connection.

With Sierra Wireless™ Tri-Network Hotspot, customers can extend their Sprint 3G/4G experience beyond just their laptops to up to eight Wi-Fi® enabled devices, such as cameras, music players, personal media players and portable game consoles. In addition, its microSD™ slot allows teams to share files and presentations with network storage. It is simple to set up with no software required.

I have been holding off getting my replacement since hearing about the switch over to LTE and lucky enough to be in one of the first areas getting LTE.

Joshua

It will be more than that. Probably about 14 GB to the user. However, with unlimited data on something as fast as 4G LTE, people will be using Google Music, YouTube, Netflix, etc., far more than local storage. I have the 32GB Nexus and I have over 20GB available, after adding everything I wanted to my device (4+ GB alone is apps).

http://www.AndroidPolice.com Artem Russakovskii

Turns out it was a mistake on Sprint's end. They just clarified to us that it's actually 32 GB!

mastermind26

So. Do we have a better timeline of when these devices will start coming in?

I'm due for an upgrade by March. :D

Kenneth

Omg Becky! Im soooooo excited!
A worthy replacement for my og evo when my contract is up in august

http://www.spd-reality.com SpeedReality

So, I've been more than a little annoyed at the speed claims by the carriers, I took some time to write an app to measure what devices really achieve in terms of speed.